Labeling machine



y G. w. VON HOFE 2,167,468

LABELING MACHINE Filed June 50, 1937 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR VV. VO/V/VOFE ATTORNEYS July 25, 1939. G. w. VON HOFE LABELING MACHINE Filed June 30, 1937 3 Sheets-Sheet 2- W 5 m fl k WwwH -J w J 1 n a m p m Q 3 3 I I & :Fl 5% w 5 B W J v 7 .m m% m N N M N m m m WM W A k K Wm w w 1 l T O w & NU M 2w Q w 8 5 5 5 July 25,; 1939. r a. w. VON HOFE 2,157,463

I "LABELING MACHINE Filed June 30, 19s? I s Sheets-Sheet s 42 #2 l-ll 63 4 4 45' 4 0 68 INVENTOR 65' 41 65 66 GEO/F66 WVON/AM'E ATTORNEYS Patented July 25, 1939 UNITED STATES LABELING MACHINE George W. von Hoi'e, Bound Brook, N. J assignor to New Jersey Machine Corporation, Hoboken, N. J., a corporation of New Jersey Application June 30, 1937, Serial No. 151,141

14 Claims.

The invention relates to labeling machines and has for its object to provide a novel apparatus adapted to be embodied in such machines and serving to apply individual labels to a plurality of panels, as exemplified by the sides of a rectangular bottle, in a simple and efficient manner and without the need for any particularly skilled supervision. Other more specific objects will appear from the description hereinafter and the features of novelty will be pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate an example of the invention without defining its limits, Fig. 1 is a side elevation, partly in section, of a machine embodying the novel apparatus; Fig. 2 is an enlarged front view of the novel apparatus; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section on the line 33 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a similar view on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a horizontal section on the line 55 of Fig. 2; Fig. 6 is a similar view on the line 66,of Fig. 2, and Fig. 7 is a detail horizontal section on the line of Fig. 1.

The labeling machine selected for the purpose of illustrating and describing the novel apparatus, includes an upright supporting frame In on which a suitable container or hopper II is mounted in position for proper co-operation with the associated elements of the machine; the container or hopper contains a supply of labels in the form of an upright stack I2 from the upper end of which the labels are successively removed for application to the articles for which said labels are intended. Suitable provision is made, in any customary manner, for periodically restoring the upper end of the stack l2 to a predetermined level in proper operative relation to the co-operating elements of the machine; as the elevating mechanism whereby this periodical adjustment is effected does not per se constitute a novel feature of the machine, and as such mechanism is wellknown, it has not been deemed necessary to illustrate the same.

For the purpose of controlling the aforesaid elevating mechanism, the machine may include a feeler |3 arranged to rest upon the upper end of the stack l2 and vertically movable in an upright guide H on the frame "I. The feeler I3 is connected by means of a link IS with a bell-crank lever |6.fixed upon a shaft rotatably mounted cause the elevating mechanism to be operated in a manner to restore the upper end of the stack |2 to its initial level; this is accomplished by the action of the bell-crank lever I6 and cam IS in co-operation with mechanism not shown, it being 5 understood that the shaft-20 is rocked on its axis when the machine is in operation.

In the'machine as illustrated, the means whereby individual labels are successively removed from the stack l2 and transferred therefrom to the 10 point of application to the elements to be labeled, is of the suction operated type, and per se may be of any suitable construction. As shown, -the label transferring means consists of a carriage 2| slidably mounted upon a horizontal guide rail 22 mp 16 ported on the frame ID in any convenient manner; the carriage 2| is slidably reciprocated on the rail 22, for instance, by means of an arm 23 fixed upon the shaft 20 and having its free end pivotally connected with a coupling rod 24 which in turn is 20 yieldingly and pivotally connected at 25 with a lug 26 forming part of or fixed upon the carriage 2| as shown in Fig. 1.

In the operation of the machine, the carriage 2| is reciprocated on the rail 22 by rocking the shaft 25 20, which swings the lever 23 to alternately push and pull the carriage 2| lengthwise of the rail 22. The mechanism whereby said shaft 20 is rocked may comprise a gear segment 21 fixed upon the shaft 20 and meshing with a rack 28 vertically 30 movable in a guideway 29 suitably located upon the frame I!) as illustrated in Fig. 1. The rack 28 is vertically reciprocated to rock the segment 21 and shaft 20 in timed relationship with the other elements of the machine, in any conventional and well-known way.

The carriage 2| serves as a support for a member 30 which is vertically slidable on said carriage 2| and at its lower end carries the suction head 3|. The specific construction of the latter may be of any conventional type, the suction head 3| in any case being connected with a source of suction, for instance, by means of a suitable tube 32. Throughout the major portion of the reciprocation of the carriage 2| the member 30 is held against downward vertical movement by means of a roller 33 which travels lengthwise of a fixed rail 34; at predetermined points the rail 34 is recessed to permit downward vertical movement of the member 30. This enables thesuction-head 3| to remove terminal labels from the upper end of the stack I2 and effect the initial application thereof to the articles for which said labels are intended. The aforesaid vertical movements of the member 30 and its associated elements on the carriage 2| may be effected by means of any suitable mechanism; as the latter per se forms no part of the novel apparatus, it has not been considered neces sary to illustrate the same.

In the labeling machine illustrated in the drawings, the labels picked up successively by the suction-head 3| from the stack l2 are provided with a coating of adhesive on one surface during the transfer of said labels from the stack l2 to the point of application to the elements for which said labels are intended. For this purpose each label subsequent to its removal from the stack l2 by the suction-head 3| is carried into progressive tangential contact with the adhesive applying roll 35 of the adhesive applying means 36 suitably mounted in proper position in the machine as shown in Fig. 1; the adhesive applying means 36 may be of any suitable construction and needs no further description as per se it does not constitute a novel feature of the instant machine.

The novel apparatus in the form in which it is embodied in the illustrated machine, constitutes a mechanical unit which comprises a channelled main guide member 31 secured in an upright position by means of bolts or the like 38, on a supporting bracket 39 suitably mounted upon or forming part of the machine frame I0. Gib plates 40 are located on the front of the guide member 31 and project inwardly beyond the side ribs of said member 31 so as to extend over the channel thereof for the purpose to be more fully set forth hereinafter; the gib plates 40 are fixed in placeon the guide member 31 in any convenient manner as by means of screws 4|. The gib plates 40 are connected with and preferably constitute integral parts of channelled auxiliary guide members 42, the latter being supported by said gib plates 40 in parallel relation to the main guide member 31 upon opposite sides thereof as shown in Figs. 2 and 5. In the illustrated arrangement, the channels of the auxiliary guide members 42 are covered by plates 43 fastened in place in any convenient manner as by means of screws 44.

The main guide member 31 in conjunction with the inwardly projecting portions of the gib plates 40 provides a guideway in which a main pressure slide 45 is slidably mounted for movement in vertical directions. The pressure slide 45 is provided with a recess 46 extending lengthwise thereof and preferably communicating at its upper end with a downwardly open hollow seat 41 as shown in Fig. 3; the upper end portion of the recess 46 is covered by the bottom of the main guide member 31, said recess 46 serving to slidably accommodate a pressure plunger 48 which includes an upwardly open hollow seat 49 in registry with the seat 41 of the pressure slide 45. A coil spring 50 extends into the seats 41 and 49 and has its opposite ends in engagement with the bottoms of the respective seats and thereby yieldingly controls the plunger 48 in the manner and for the purpose to be more fully set forth hereinafter. For the purpose of guiding the lower end portion of the plunger 48, the latter is recessed as indicated at 5| for co-operation with a plate 52 which is fastened to the pressure slide 45 in any convenient manner as by screws 53 and extends transversely across the plunger 48; in addition to guiding the latter in its movements, the plate 52 in co-operation with the shoulder 54 formed by the recess 5| serves as a stop to limit the outward movements of the plunger 48.

At its lower end the latter is provided with a preferably integral horizontal extension 55 and a vertical recess 56 for the accommodation of the upright arm of a bracket 51 secured in place by a screw 58 or equivalent means; the horizontal arm of the bracket 51 extends beneath and in surface engagement with the extension 55 and carries a pressure member 59 as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3.

The pressure member 59 may be of any suitable character dependent upon the articles which are to be labeled and in the illustrated example includes a fiat resilient pad 60. To avoid interference by the head of the screw 56 with the vertical movements of the pressure member 59 and plunger 48, the pressure slide 45 may be provided at its lower end with a recess 6| as shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

With the arrangement as illustrated and described, the main pressure slide 45 and the pressure plunger 48 together constitute bi-partite pressure means consisting of two telescopically combined sections, one of which is yieldingly carried by the other under the influence of the coil spring 50 for the purpose to be more fully set forth hereinafter.

The apparatus further comprises auxiliary slides 62 which are slidably mounted in the auxiliary guide members 42, for instance, in surface engagement with the plates 43, as illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5. In the preferred arrangement, friction plates or shoes 63 are located in surface engagement with the slides 62 between the latter and the lower vertical surfaces of the guide members 42. The shoes 63 are pressed against the slides 62 by springs 64 located in hollow bosses 65 formed on the guide members 42; the tension of the springs 64 and the pressure of the shoes 63 against the slides 62 may be adjusted by means of adjusting screws 66 carried by the bosses 65 and engaging disks 61 which in turn are in contact with the one end of'the springs 64, lock nuts 68 being provided for fixing said screws 66 in adjusted positions.

At the lower ends the auxiliary slides 62 carry holder brackets 69 which are pivoted at 10 and are provided with ribs 1| extending lengthwise of said brackets 69 and arranged to fit into grooves 12 extending lengthwise of holders 13; the latter are slotted at 14 for the accommodation of set screws 15 whereby said holders 13 are adjustably fixed in place on the holder brackets 69. The holders 13 are designed to carry wiping devices which assist in the application of the labels in the manner to be more fully described herein after. In the illustrated example the wiping devices are shown in the form of brushes 16, the backs 11 of which are adjustably mounted in grooved supports 18 forming part of or connected with the holders 13; set screws 19 are provided for fixing the brush backs 11 against movement in the supports 18.

It will be noted, with the arrangement as shown and described, that the brushes 16 may be adjusted toward and away from each other by shifting the holders 13 lengthwise of the ribs 1| of the holder brackets 69; in addition, the brushes 16 may be adjusted in directions at right angles to the aforesaid adjustment by shifting the brushbacks 11 in the supports 18. It is accordingly easily possible to adjust and set the brushes 16 or equivalent wiping devices in any desired manner relatively to each other and to the articles being labeled.

The holder brackets 69 are provided with upright lugs 80 carrying adjustable abutments, for instance, in the form of screws 8|, arranged to co-operate with pins 82 projecting outwardly from the slides 62 for arresting the pivotal movements 2,167,468 of the brackets 89 and associated elements in one direction. A second upright lug 82 may be provided on the left-hand holder bracket 89, as shown in Fig. 2, and may carry a second screw 84 or its equivalent, for co-operation with the adjacent pin 82 to arrest the pivotal movement of the left-hand holder bracket 69 in the opposite direction; as shown at the right in Fig. 2, the same result may be obtained by mounting an adjustable abutment or screw 85 on an angle bracket 88 which is fastened to the associated slide 62. A lock-nut 81 may be provided for locking the screw 85 in an adjusted position for engagement by the right hand holder bracket 59 to limit its pivotal movement in said opposite direction. In practice both of the illustrated arrangements may be used in a given machine as shown in Fig. 2, or one of said arrangements may be duplicated in a given machine for arresting the pivotal move ments of the respective holder brackets 59. The latter further include outwardly projecting ears 88 to which connecting rods 89 are pivotally con: nected' at 90; the upper ends of the rods 89 are yieldingly and pivotally connected at 9| with arms 92 which project outwardly in opposite directions from the pressure slide 45 and preferably constitute integral parts thereof.

For the purpose of operating the apparatus shown in detail in Figs. 2 to 6 inclusive,'the machine includes a lever 93 loosely mounted on the shaft 20 and provided with a rounded front end 94 projecting into a slot 05 located at the upper end of the pressure slide 45, as illustrated in Fig. 2. Any suitable mechanism may be provided in the machine for rocking the lever 93 on the shaft 20 to vertically actuate the pressure slide 45 and its associated elements in the intended manner. In the illustrated example, the aforesaid mechanism includes an operating member 96 having its one end pivotally connected at 91 with a bracket 98 forming part of or mounted upon the lever 93 in the preferred arrangement, the bracket 98 is provided with a slot 99 in which the'pivot 9'! is adjustable and capable of being set, in order to selectively vary the operative movements of the lever 93 and the parts actuated thereby. At its lower end the operating member 98 is provided with a recess I00 for slidably accommodating a block IOI pivotally mounted on the frame I0 and serving to guide the member 96 in its operation; the latter may be effected by means of a roller conventionally carried by said member 96 and acted on by a suitable cam I02 fixed upon a shaft I03 journalled in the frame I0 in any convenient manner. r

In addition to the parts so far described, the machine includes a novel means for holding the articles in position forthe application of the labels. The means under discussion consists of a support I04 carried by an upright bar I05 which is mounted in the channelled head I05 of a bracket I01 fastened to a suitable part of the frame I0, for instance, by means of screws or the like I08. Screwthreaded studs I09 project outwardly from the head I06 and extend loosely through openings in a friction plate I I0 arranged in frictional surface engagement with bar I05, as illustrated in Figs. 1 and '7. Coil springs I II are carried by the studs I09 with one end in engagement with the plate .I I0 and the other end in contact with washers II2 which in turn are engaged by wing nuts I It! or their equivalent, threaded upon said studs I09.

With this arrangement the support I04 may be adjusted to support articles of-varying dimensions in proper label receiving relation to the label applying means; at the same time the wing nuts I I8 may be adjusted on the studs I00 to selectively adjust the tension of the springs III to thereby cause the plate 0 to engage the bar I05 with sufficient, friction to maintain the latter and the support I04 in operative position under normal operating conditions.- If, however, for any reason abnormal pressure is developed on the support I04 or the article carried thereby, the frictional hold on the bar I 05 will be overcome thereby and the support I04 accordingly will move downwardly, or in other words, will yield under said abnormal pressure and thus will prevent injury to the mechanism and to the article carried by the support I04 at the time. When the above displacement of the support I04 has taken place from any cause, the parts .are required to be reset to properoperative positions before the machine is continued in operation.

In describing the operation of the machine, and the novel apparatus included therein, it will be assumed that the articles to which labels are being applied are bottles A of rectangular form in cross-section; it is, of course, to be understood that this is in no sense to define the operative scope of the machine or the aforesaid novel apparatus.

In practice, the carriage 2| is reciprocated on the rail 22 by the associated operating mechanism and occupies temporary positionsof rest at the right and left hand ends respectively of said rail 22 in Fig. 1 of the drawings. During the inactive period at the right hand end of therail 22, the suction head 3| is moved downwardly into contact with the terminal label at the top of the stack I2, it being understood that at this stage the feeler I2 occupies a raised position out of the way in order to enable the suction head 3| to reach the top ofthe stack I2 without interference. At the proper moment, suction is made effective in the suction head 3| to lift the terminal label from the top of the stack by the upward movement of the member 30 which remains in a raised position during the travel. of the carriage 2| toward the left hand end of the rail 22 in Fig. 1; during this travel toward the left, the label B carried by the suction head 3| passes in progressive tangential contact with the adhesive applying roll 35 and thus receives a coating of adhesive on its one surface. During the period of rest at the left hand end of the rail 22 in Fig. 1, the suctionhead 3| moves into contact with the bottle A which previously has been placed in position upon .the support I04 and initially applies the label B carried by the suction head 3| at the time to the upper face of. said bottle A. When the aforesaid initial appllcatiomof the label B to the bottle A has been effected, the suction in' the suction head 3| is discontinued in the.

away from the bottle A to a position above the adhesive applying roll 35, and at the proper time the carriage 2| is again shifted toward the right on the rail 22 and the operative steps just described are repeated. After the initialrapplication of the label B to the bottle A has been completed in the illustrated example of the operation of the machine, an intermediate portion of the label B will be in adhesive engagement with the upper face of the bottle A while the two" opposite end sections of the label will project in opposite directions beyond said surface. In proper synchronism with the other operative movements of the machine, the lever 88 is rocked about the axis of the shaft 20 in a downward direction to correspondingly move the main pressure slide 45 of the bi-partite pressure means downwardly in the guideway provided by the main guide member 31 and the inwardly projecting portions of the gib plates 40; this downward movement of the main pressure slide 45 is com-' municated through the medium of .the coil spring 50 to the other section of the bi-partite pressure means, that is the plunger 48, to finally bring the resilient pad 60 of the pressure member 59 into contact with that portion of the label B which lies inadhesive contact withthe upper face of the bottle A. As the downward movement of the lever 93 continues, the plunger 48 will be held stationary by the engagement of the pad 60 with the bottle A as described above, and the other parts of the apparatus illustrated in Fig. 2 will proceed in a downward direction beyond this point; in other words, the coil spring 50 will be compressed to permit the main pressure slide 45 to move telescopically or downwardly relatively to the plunger 48. As these operations take place, the auxiliary slides 62 will correspondingly move downwardly and will cause the wiping devices or specifically the brushes I6 to engage the outwardly projecting portions. of the label B and apply them adhesively to opposite upright side faces of the bottle A, as shown in Fig. 2; as the brushes I6 or their equivalent, thus move downwardly, they will exert a wiping action whereby the aforesaid portions of the label B will be applied to the sides of the bottle A in a smooth and efllcient manner. It will be understood that the downward movement of the auxiliary slides 62 is brought about through the medium of the connecting rods 88 and the arms 92 of the main pressure slide 45. The downward force developed by the connecting rods 89 will first pivotally swing the holder brackets 69 on the pivots I0 and cause the abutment screw 84 to engage the adjacent pin 82 at the left hand side of Fig. 2, and at the same time to cause the right hand holder bracket 68 to contact with the abutment screw 85 at the right hand in Fig. 2. In either case, the pivotal movements of the holder brackets 69 in this direction will be arrested so that continued downward movement of the rods 89 and associated elements will be communicated to the auxiliary slides 62. When the application of the label B to the bottle A has been completed, the lever 93 will be rocked in an upward direction and accordingly will develop an upward pull on the connecting rods 89 which will initially swing the holder brackets 68 on the pivots I0 until this movement is stopped by the engagement of the abutment screws 8| with the respective pins 82 on the auxiliary slides -62; this pivotal movement of the holder brackets 89 will be sufllcient to move the brushes I6 or their equivalent away from and out of contact with the labeled sides of the bottle A, as will be apparent. Continued upward movement of the lever 93 will correspondingly shift the auxiliary slides 62 upwardly in the auxiliary guide members 42, to their original positions in which said auxiliary slides 62 will be held by the frictional engagement of the friction shoes 63 with said I slides 62; by adjusting the screws 66, the tension of the spring 64 may be adjusted to vary the degree of frictional engagement of the gibs 63 with the auxiliary slide 62 at will, and to meet any desired conditions. As the lever 93 is moved upwardly in the described manner, the main pressure slide 45 will also move correspondingly upward in the guide-way formed by the main guide member 81 and the inwardly projecting portions of the gib plates 40. During this initial upward movement of the main guide member 81, the spring 50 will maintain the pad 60 of the pressure member 59 in contact with the labeled upper face of the bottle A until said spring 50 has fully expanded whereupon the plunger 48 "will be raised throughout the continued upward movement of the main pressure slide 45.

The completely labeled bottle A or its equivalent, is then removed from the support I04 and replaced by another bottle A, after which the operations described above are repeated in proper sequence. It will be understood as soon as the next downward movement of the main pressure slide 45 and its associated element takes place that the downward force exerted by the connecting rods 89 will pivotally swing the one holder bracket 69 into contact with the abutment screw 85 and the abutment screw 84 of the other holder bracket 68 into engagement with the adjacent pin 82 on the associated auxiliary slide 62. In either case, the brushes 16 or their equivalent will be returned tothe operative position in which, as the operation of the apparatus proceeds, they are again in position to develop a wiping action whereby the projecting portions of the label B are caused to adhere to the opposite vertical sides of the bottle A.

If for any reason an abnormal pressure is developed on the bottle A or its equivalent by the pad 50 of the pressure member 59, for instance because of an incorrect positioning of a bottle A on the support I04, this abnormal pressure will overcome the frictional resistance of the plate IIO on the bar I05 and cause the support I04 of the bottle A carried thereby to yield downwardly without injury to the mechanism or to the particular bottle A. As previously stated, the frictional pressure of the plate H0 on the bar I05 is sufllcient to hold the bar I05 and with it the support I04 in operative position against the downward displacement under any normal labeling pressure exerted by the pad 60 of the pressure member 59.

The apparatus is of maximum efllciency in operation and requires no skilled supervision and at the same time constitutes a mechanical unit capable of being readily embodied in existing labeling machines of the type for which it is adapted. While the apparatus in its illustrated form is designed to apply labels to three sides of a rectangular element such as a bottle, it will be obviousthat the apparatus may be constructed to operate with equal efllciency for the purpose of applying labelsto elements of other than rectangular form in cross section.

Furthermore, while the aforesaid mechanical unit is designed primarily for incorporation in labeling machines to apply labels to articles, it is to be understood that this does not define the limits of utility of said unit.

Various changes in the specific forms shown and described may be made within the scope of the claims without departing from the spirit of the invention.

1. In a labeling machine, means for'supporting an article to be labeled, an upright main guideway, a main pressure slide movably mounted in said guideway and provided with a recess, a spring controlled plunger slidably mounted in said recess, a pressure device carried by said plunger,

upright auxiliary guideways upon opposite sides of said main guideway in parallel relation thereto, auxiliary slides movable in said auxiliary guideways, spring controlled friction gibs carried by' said auxiliary guideways in engagementwith said auxiliary slides, holder brackets pivotally mounted at the lower ends of said auxiliary slides, holders adjustably mounted on said holder brackets, wiping devices adjustably carried by said holders, connecting rods pivotally connected with said holder brackets and said main slide, means for limiting the pivotal movements of said holder brackets, means for delivering an adhesive coated label for initial application to said article, and means for operating said main slide to cause said pressure device to press a predetermined portion of said label into adhesive engagement with said article and to cause saidwiping devices to adhesively apply other portions of said label to said article.

an article to be labeled, an upright main guideway, a bi-partite pressure means movably mount-' ed in said main guideway and consisting of telescopically combined sections, a spring whereby said sections are yieldingly connected, a pressure device carried by one section of said bi-partite pressure means, upright auxiliary guideways in spaced parallel relation to said main guideway, auxiliary slides frictionally mounted in said auxiliary guideways for movement therein, wiping means pivotally mounted at the lower ends of said auxiliary slides, connecting rods pivotally connected with said bi-partite pressure means and said wiping means for initially moving the latter to and from operative positions on said auxiliary slides, means for limiting the pivotal movements of said wiping means, means for delivering an adhesive coated label for initial application to said article, and means for operating said bipartite pressure means to press a predetermined portion of said label into adhesive engagement with said article, and for coincidentally actuating said auxiliary slides to cause said wiping means to adhesively apply other portions of said label to said article.

3. In a labeling machine, means for supporting an article to be labeled, an upright main guideway, a bi-partite pressure means movably mounted in said main guideway and consisting of telescopically combined sections, a spring whereby said sections are yieldinglyconnected, a

, pressure device carried by one section of said bi-partite pressure means, wiping means operatively connected with said bi-partite pressure means for movement therewith and including wiping devices relatively movable to and from operative positions by the initial operative movementsof said bi-partite pressure means, means for delivering an adhesive coated label for iniposite sides of said main guideway, a main pres-- sure slide movably mounted in said main guideway and provided with a recess, a pressure plunger slidably mounted in said recess for telescopic movement relatively to said main pressure slide, a spring whereby the telescopic movements of said pressure plunger are controlled, a pressure device carried by said pressure plunger, auxiliary slides movably mounted in said auxiliary guideways, friction shoes carried by said,

auxiliary guideways in frictional engagement with said auxiliary slides, springs eflective on said shoes to yieldingly force the latter against said slides, adjusting screws for varying the tension of said springs, holder brackets pivotally mounted at the lower ends of said slides, holders ad'- justably mounted on said holder'brackets, supports carried by said holders, wiping devices ad- .justably mounted in said supports, connecting rods operatively connected with said main pressure slide and said holder brackets ifor transmitting the operative movements of said main pressure slide to said auxiliary slides and for initially moving said holder brackets pivotally to shift said wiping devices to and from operative positions and vice versa, and means for limitiizsg the pivotal movements of said holder bracke 5. A mechanical unit comprising a main guideway adapted for mounting in a machine, auxiliary guideways carried by said main guideway and located in parallel relation thereto upon opposite sides of said main guideway, a main pressure slide movably mounted in said main guideway and providedwith a recess,a pressure plunger slidably mounted in said recess for telescopic movement relatively to said main pressure slide, a spring whereby the telescopic movements of said pressure plunger are controlled, a pressure device carried by said pressure plunger, auxiliary slides movably mounted in said auxiliary guideways, friction shoes carried by said auxiliary guideways. in frictional engagement with said auxiliary slides, springs efiective on said shoes to yieldingly force the latter against said slides, adjusting screws for varying the tension of said springs, wipingmeans pivotally mounted at the lower ends of said auxiliary slides, connecting rods operatively connected with said main pressure slide and with said wiping means i for transmitting the operative movements of said main pressure slide to said auxiliary slides and for initially moving said wiping means pivotally to and from operative positions and vice versa, and means for limiting the pivotal movements of said wiping means.

6. A mechanical unit comprising a. main guideway adapted for mounting in a machine, auxiliary guideways carried by said main guideway and located in parallel relation thereto upon opposite sides of said main guideway, a bi-partite pressure means movably mounted in said main guideway and consisting of telescopically combined sections, a spring whereby said sections are yieldingly connected, auxiliary slides movably mounted in said auxiliary giudeways, means for yieldingly resisting the movements of said auxiliary slides, wiping means pivotally mounted on i iary guiding means carried by said main guideway in operative relation thereto, yielding pressure means movably mounted in said main guideway, auxiliary means movably mounted in said auxiliary guiding means, wiping means movably mounted on said auxiliary means, and including at least one wiping device adjustable in a plurality of directions transverse to. each other, and

connections between said wiping means and said pressure means for transmitting the operative movements of the latter to said wiping means and for initially shifting said wiping device to and from its operative position and vice versa.

9. A mechanical unit comprising yielding pressure means guided in an operative path, associated wiping means guided in an adjacent operative path, and an operative connection between said wiping means and pressure means whereby the initial operative movements of the latter are transmitted to said wiping means to shift the latter relatively to its operative path, and whereby the continued operative movements of said pressure means are caused to shift said wiping means lengthwise of its operative path in an operative cycle.

10. In a labeling machine, means for applying labels under pressure to articles, a fixed supporting bracket having a channelled head, a bar movably mounted in. said head, a support carried by said bar for supporting articles in position to be labeled, screwthreaded studs projecting outwardly from said head, a friction plate mounted on said studs in surface engagement with said bar, springs on said studs for forcing said friction plate against said bar to resist normal labeling pressures on said support and to enable the bar to yield under abnormal pressures developed onsaid support, and nuts threaded on 'said studs for adjusting the resilient pressure exerted by said springs on said plate whereby the degree of friction developed by the latter on said bar may be selectively adjusted.

yielding gripping means effective on one of said previously mentioned means for resisting normal labeling pressures many of said set positions,

and for enabling said one of said means to yield under abnormal pressure developed on said articles, by said applying means in any of said set positions.

' 12. In a labeling machine, means for applying labels under pressure to articles, means adjustable relatively to said label applying means to varying set positions for supporting diflerent articles in common label receivingrelation to said applying means, and means for yieldingly fixing said supporting means in any set position to which it may be adjusted, said fixing means being resistant to normal labeling pressures in any of said set positions and enabling said supporting means to yield in any of said set positions to abnormal pressures developed thereon.

13. In a labeling machine, means for applying labels under pressure, a fixed supporting bracket, a bar movably mounted on said bracket, a support carried by said bar and adjustable therewith in said bracket to varying set positions for supporting different articles in common label receiving relation to said label applying means, and yielding meanseflectiye on said bar throughout its length for fixing said support in any of said set positions against normal labeling pressures and for enabling said support to yield in any of said set positions under abnormal pressures developed thereon.

14. In a labeling machine, means for applying labels under pressure, a fixed supporting bracket having a channelled head, a bar mounted on said head and movable in the channel thereof, a support'oarried by said bar and adjustable therewith in said'channel to varying set positions for supporting difierent articles in common label receiving relation to said label applying means, and a device on said head arranged for frictional engagement with said bar throughout its length for fixing said support in any of said set positions against normal labeling pressures and for enabling said support to yield in any of said set positions under abnormal pressures developed thereon.

GEORGE W. von HOPE 

